Moving to Monaco was supposed to be a fresh start for John Cleese, with a new home, a new wife and new financial stability thanks to expatriate tax status. Things didn’t quite work out that way, however, and now the legendary comic actor has decided to move back to London. The 73-year-old and his wife have vacated their exclusive Carre d’Or district apartment and put most of their artwork and all of their furniture up for sale on the Monaco Life website.
Loneliness and wanting to be nearer to his friends appear to have overridden the practical reasons why Cleese made a relocation overseas, which is an unfortunate state of affairs given the less than stellar condition of his finances. Because he is leaving Monaco prior to the end of the current financial year, Cleese will also have to pay the Inland Revenue a full year’s worth of tax, which is something he moved to Monaco to try to avoid in the first place.
Cleese was selling off film memorabilia via a specialist website back in January and is now selling a pair of side tables and a sofa by Hollywood designer Christopher Guy at discount prices.
On the plus side, new wife Jennifer Wade remains by his side. This is a good thing in many ways, given that it was his divorce from US psychotherapist Alyce Faye Eichelberger that forced him into trying to find a tax haven to start with. “Think what I’d have had to pay Alyce if she had contributed anything to the relationship,” he noted at the time.
Jon Huser
